Can you remember your first day of work at your first real job? What was it like? If it was anything like mine, you were probably nervous as hell walking through the front doors. I got in the elevator, hit 32, and thought to myself, "I have absolutely no clue what I'm doing."
As the elevator filled with people, the man next to me dropped something he intended in putting in his pocket. It wasn't anything important, possibly trash even. I picked it up and gave it to him, saying, "Oh hey, you dropped this." He responded, "Thank you!" It was a simple interaction, but my mind was swirling; "Is this my future boss? Is this the right foot that I needed to start on? We'll look back on this with fond memories." Then he got off on 25. Damn! A good deed wasted!
As the elevator filled with people, the man next to me dropped something he intended in putting in his pocket. It wasn't anything important, possibly trash even. I picked it up and gave it to him, saying, "Oh hey, you dropped this." He responded, "Thank you!" It was a simple interaction, but my mind was swirling; "Is this my future boss? Is this the right foot that I needed to start on? We'll look back on this with fond memories." Then he got off on 25. Damn! A good deed wasted!
After arriving on 32, HR greeted me and did their HR thing, and eventually I was directed to my desk. I couldn't believe it. Although not technically a "window seat," our cubicles have low-walls, so I could look out onto the heart of downtown Seattle. It was a bright and beautiful day - and for a moment - I forgot to be nervous.
Anyways, Danya (my real boss) came over and started talking about the project I was going to be working on - Waiea Tower. Whoa! It was super cool, and I realized that I scored big. The side of the building undulates like the waves of the ocean (which is only a block away). He told me that it was a super fancy condo tower that will be sold to 1%-ers who will be there for only one or two weeks of the year.
Danya: "See all these people on the streets in these renderings? It won't be like that in real life at all. It'll sit empty for most of the year. <sigh> But hey! Look how cool it looks!"
I could tell I was going to like him.
My first task would be to design the penthouse that was going to break the Hawaii real estate record for - You Have Too Much Money, Give It To Me.
What does your condo need for it to qualify for Hawaii's YHTMM, GITM record? Well, for starters it's on the 35th floor with a protected view of the ocean across the street. You've got a helicopter? That's cool, cuz your penthouse comes with a helipad. That comes in handy if The Rock needs to rescue you from a tsunami, or you need to have a secret chat with Leo. Want an infinity pool that blends into the oceanic horizon so you don't know where your pool ends and the ocean begins? That comes standard. What about "lanai space" you ask? (In Hawaii exterior decks are called lanais). It comes with over 1000 square feet of lanai space - which happens to be about twice the size of my one-bedroom apartment in Seattle.
I miss those days:
Anyways, Danya (my real boss) came over and started talking about the project I was going to be working on - Waiea Tower. Whoa! It was super cool, and I realized that I scored big. The side of the building undulates like the waves of the ocean (which is only a block away). He told me that it was a super fancy condo tower that will be sold to 1%-ers who will be there for only one or two weeks of the year.Danya: "See all these people on the streets in these renderings? It won't be like that in real life at all. It'll sit empty for most of the year. <sigh> But hey! Look how cool it looks!"
I could tell I was going to like him.
My first task would be to design the penthouse that was going to break the Hawaii real estate record for - You Have Too Much Money, Give It To Me.
Out came the trace-paper (translucent paper, not my personal brand of paper) and he started sketching out design suggestions.Danya, "We'll put a column here, here, here,...., and here. Put some beams here, here, here,....., and here. Lateral system will go here, and here. Definitely not there, right? <hahaha>" (I faked like I understood the joke and laughed too) "And we'll cantilever this lanai, like this. So...I think that should get you started. I'll let you take this and run with it. Figure out what all this needs to be for it to work."
I had this overwhelming panic sweep my body. Like the kind of panic you had as a teenager when you had to tell your parents you wrecked their car. He was about to leave, and I had not the slightest idea of what my next move was going to be. How long should I wait before going up to him and saying, "Hey Danya. I'm a failure. I don't have a clue on how to do this. Can you help me, or should you just fire me now? Please don't fire me. I'm a really good guy! I even helped out some guy on the elevator on my way up here this morning." Should I wait 10 minutes before starting that conversation? Half hour? Maybe I'll push it to an hour and enjoy this view while I still have it.
But before he left, he said, "And don't worry. Katelin will help you every step of the way."
On cue, Katelin arrived and introduced herself. Wow. What a hero! Katelin rescued me that day, and for many more days, weeks, and probably months after that day. Don't worry, Katelin will show up again in a future post.
You, "ENOUGH TALKING, LET'S SEE THIS SLAB THAT LOOKS LIKE A THING!"
Sheesh, don't yell! It's coming! I just wanted to share what my first day of work was like. This slab was quite literally the first thing I ever worked on in my professional career. So it has a special place in my heart.
This penthouse has undergone countless design iterations; the architects can't stop fiddling around with it. In fact, I worked on it this week! Anyways, it was eventually turned into a concrete structure, and got even bigger. A few months ago, I was pivoting my slab and looked at it from a new angle, and I saw it. It's a freaking tug boat!
P.S. Here's a pretty cool video that I shared on Facebook awhile back. It's a construction update on Waiea Tower. Construction pictures/videos are the best because they haven't covered up the beautiful concrete with the architect's stuff.
